by Lindsay H. Jones, USA TODAY Sports

by Lindsay H. Jones, USA TODAY Sports

SAN DIEGO - When the San Diego Chargers convene Monday for their first full-squad practices since the draft - and their choice of linebacker Manti Te'o - new coach Mike McCoy won't issue any special warnings.

McCoy won't tell his veteran players to take it easy on Te'o, nor do Chargers coaches expect veterans to make Te'o's transition to an NFL locker room any more difficult than it would be for the average rookie.

"He's one of us," McCoy told USA TODAY Sports. "We're just going to play. We're not going to address the media about it every day and we're not going to worry about it. Every time we go on the road he'll have to deal with some things, but we're just going to do what we do. If questions get asked, he's got to answer them."

Yet Te'o is no average rookie. He was one of the most famous players in college football last season, a Heisman Trophy finalist from Notre Dame, and the most infamous player in the offseason when it was revealed he had been duped in a very public catfishing scandal that his non-existent girlfriend had died.

Although McCoy said he has a firm "no hazing" policy in place, his teammates are sure to be curious. Te'o should expect jokes, questions and perhaps even some bullying, because that's life for a rookie in any NFL locker room, described by several former players as the ultimate alpha male workplace.

Te'o's notoriety could make him an even greater target than the rest of his rookie teammates.

"It's still in a lot of ways that playground mentality: Pick on the weak or the weaker and figure out who can take it," said Matt Birk, who retired this year after 15 seasons as the center for the Minnesota Vikings and Baltimore Ravens. "And it serves a purpose for rookies, too. You've got to be mentally tough in the NFL. You're coming from college, where you're the big man on campus. It's different in the NFL. And you need to be prepared for that. You need to start over."

Indeed, Te'o said after his first practice with the Chargers that he views his opportunity in San Diego as a "new chapter in my life."

Te'o arrived in San Diego late last week, signed his first NFL contract and participated in the rookies-only minicamp. He remained fairly sheltered for those three days, save for the dozen television cameras and small horde of reporters lining the field at the rookie minicamp Friday.

Otherwise, it was just five other draft picks, 20 or so undrafted free agents â?? most as nervous as Te'o was â?? and a dozen more tryout players.

Te'o figures to be the main attraction again today, however, when he meets the rest of his teammates for the first time, and lines up at inside linebacker with the first-team defense. He'll be looking to prove himself to his teammates right away.

"If you're going to be that piece out there, you can't be the weak link out there. You never want to be that guy. So for me, and I think for everybody coming in as a rookie, you keep your head down, keep your head in the playbook, work hard," Te'o said. "The learning curve can be challenging, but as long as your priorities are in the right place, it'll come to you sooner or later."

Keeping focus on team

But that's football. No rookie in the NFL outside perhaps New York Jets quarterback Geno Smith will face as much scrutiny as Te'o. None was as famous and none became the punch line for as many jokes.

It has been four months since Te'o said he was duped by a male acquaintance who made up fictional girlfriend Lennay Kekua. The jokes at Te'o's expense have yet to cease.

That much was clear last week, when Maxim included Kekua â?? illustrated by a bikini over an invisible body â?? in its list of hottest women in America. When Te'o signed his rookie contract Thursday, an event documented by a snapshot and shared on social media by the Chargers, hundreds of Internet comedians responded with jokes about the fake relationship.

"It doesn't really matter at the end of the day what people say. Only thing that matters to me is what I do on the field, and what my teammates know me as, and that's a guy that works hard and loves the game," Te'o said. "When you start to focus on what people on the outside might think, that's when you start getting into trouble. So for me, I'm just focusing on what I can do for my team, and representing my team and my family the best I can."

Te'o was able to meet some of his Chargers teammates last month when he was flown to San Diego immediately after the draft. Among them, he spent some time with safety Eric Weddle, the defensive leader, who, like Te'o, is a member of the Mormon Church. That bonding time could help, but others might not be as welcoming.

Former NFL linebacker Derrick Brooks met with Te'o last month and helped prepare Te'o for what he might face.

Brooks, who played 14 seasons, all with the Tampa Bay Bucs, tried to imagine how he and his teammates would have reacted if Te'o had joined them after such an embarrassing off-field situation. Brooks would have been curious to hear the details from Te'o himself and would have appreciated if Te'o were able to crack a joke or two about the catfishing or Kekua.

"We make fun of ourselves. That's how we stay little boys playing this big manly game of football. Use that to your advantage to create a comfortable environment," Brooks said. "It's easier for people to forget. If you make light of it, they're going to make light of it for a moment and then move on. If you keep holding onto it, your team will hold onto it."

'Let it go and laugh it off'

Former NFL offensive lineman Ross Tucker agreed that humor would be one way for Te'o to handle his unique locker room situation. Another option, Tucker said, would be to fight back.

Tucker, who played for four teams over five seasons and now works as an NFL analyst for Sports USA, recalled getting into several fights as a way to show older teammates he could hold his own.

"The other option he could do immediately, or let it go for a while and then do it, would be to confront physically whoever is giving him a hard time about it -- I mean like punch whoever said it (to his) face. That's a decision he has to make and probably something he has to feel out," Tucker said. "I'd encourage him to let it go and laugh it off. But if it got to the point where they wouldn't let it go and they kept saying it, then, he might have to stand up for himself."

San Diego defensive coordinator John Pagano doesn't believe any situation would arise with his players where Te'o will feel uncomfortable. There will be no rookie haircuts (as in Tim Tebow's Friar Tuck 'do with the Denver Broncos in 2010) or physical acts (as when New York Giants corner Prince Amukamara was tossed in a cold tub last year). Te'o can expect to have to sing the Notre Dame fight song in front of the whole team and buy snacks for the linebackers, but that's it.

"The veterans in that locker room will handle it how they need to handle it," Pagano said.

Te'o believes the best way to win over teammates will be to do it on the field and in the meeting rooms. He will be lined up alongside veteran Donald Butler when the full team resumes practice today. That spot, Te'o knows, guarantees him nothing but a chance. It doesn't bring respect, and being a projected starter won't make things any easier in the locker room.

Making jokes at his own expense might lighten the mood, but it's his play that will matter more, he said.

"You have to keep your head down. Know you're a rookie, keep your head down, work hard, and show that you really care about what you're doing, about your job," Te'o said.

"Obviously, you have to earn the respect of the veterans, and I'm sure that in time, with my work ethic, it'll come soon."